Пособия / Л.П. Даниленко, Ю.Ю. Сильман TECHNICAL ENGLISH FOR CIVIL ENGINEERS AND STRUCTURAL DESIGNERS

2.The thickness of thermal insulation depends on…

3.Building Regulation Standards should be taken into account when…

4.Possible risks should be also…

5.Concrete beams or lintels serve as…

6.An insulation layer helps to…

7.For waterproof finish builders usually use…

Task. Read and translate the text without the dictionary.

TEXT 11. FINISHING OF EXTERIOR WALLS

The façade of any building is very important thing. It is an architecturally-style element of the house we always pay attention to. The important task is to create an image of the house, using elements of an architectural decor.

Finishing of facades is an external shape of a building. Now at the market of building materials advanced technologies and modern kinds of facing materials are more often applied. Certainly, modern buildings should be durable and beautiful, cosy and warm, fireproof, strong and original.

The facade can be faced with plaster, putty (замазка, шпаклевка), painted or finished with various siding elements. The choice of various finishing materials for facades depends on intended purpose of the building. For example, a saloncanbe glassed,anoffice–finishedwithsiding,aplant–justpainted.

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Siding. The word “siding” is borrowed from the American English language. Siding is not only a material (as many people consider), it is also a system, a modern technology of facing the façade by different or a certain covering materials.

Finishing by siding allows considerably to improve the appearance of a building thanks to processing of panels (обработка панелей) by various paints and vanish coverings.

Siding

Siding is very modern, new building material. For the first time siding was used in the USA at the end of 1950s. Very soon this material has become very popular at the building markets of America and Canada, and than in

Europe. In Russia siding appeared in the 1990s and its popularity is constantly growing. Siding carries out not only protective function from atmosphere influence, but also makes a building harmonious and attractive.

Siding

Siding is easy to work with. It helps to hide large defects on a building. Neither sunlight, nor humidity, neither wind, nor snow with rain, influence the siding; this material is capable to withstand temperatures from –50°С to +50°С. Siding is much cheaper, than other finishing materials for facades of buildings.

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Siding basic elements are panels which are usually fastened on house walls. In the bottom the panel is fixed by a special strip invisible even in a ready house. Joints from the face side hold panels. Windows and doors are usually faced with special verge boards(фронтальная доска)whicharealsoreferredtosiding.

Various facing materials are used for an ornament of facades; the most popular being natural and artificial stone, ceramic granite, a decorative brick, a ceramic tile, marble, clapboard, a facingbrick, paint, vanish materials and others.

Vinyl siding

One of the most economic, aesthetically attractive and effective kinds of finishing materials

for facing the facades of buildings is a vinyl siding. This material is functional, simple in installation, and it is produced in a wide range of colours. Besides a traditional vinyl siding, a metal siding is applied to facades of buildings.

Vinyl siding

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The vinyl siding is an excellent material for finishing of facades of the house. It is popular because of its excellent unique quality. Thanks to various mixes the given material resists various climatic changes.

Vinyl (plastic) siding is plastic wall panels with the thickness of 1 mm. The surface of this material, which is also called clapboard, reminds a tree structure. The vinyl siding does not undergo the influence of solar rays and does not decay.

Advantages of vinyl siding.

The siding is nontoxic and incombustible, resistant to the various atmosphere phenomena and chemicals.

The siding does not change its colour, does not subject to corrosion and does not break under the influence of low temperature.

The siding is easy to work. Dirty panels of siding need to be washedoutfromahose(шланг)andthehousewilllook asanewone.

Thanks to simplicity of installation, the light weight, convenient transportation the siding can be fixed at any season of the year.

Metal siding

The metal siding is also very widely used. As a finishing material it possesses excellent properties which allow to keep the house in the ideal state for a long time. A metal siding is made of steel which at first is processed at low temperature, and then galvanized at high temperature. After these procedures the steel is covered with special polymers.

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Metal siding is one of the simplest ways to improve a facade of the whole building, thanks to high speed technology of installation. It has a lot of advantages.

Metal siding is:

friendly to environment;

strong;

saving colour for a long time;

durable;

not combustible;

resistant to temperature changes.

A natural stone

Natural stone is a beautiful, durable, strong and harmless building material. Besides, a stone building becomes not only graceful, but also strong enough.

The important indicator of a natural stone is its wear resistance. It resists various corrosive elements of environment, such as salts or acids. Stone is advisable for erecting constructions in cities, where the atmosphere is saturated with salts and acids. Except physical properties, a natural stone has aesthetic appearance which defines the exterior of the buildings erected.

Granite and marble belong to a natural stone. Thanks to their good qualities: strength, hardness, density, very low water-saturation, these stones are widely used for facing the buildings.

A ceramic tile

Now the ceramic tile is also considered to be really attractive, like a royal building material, as it helps to decorate any house.

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The ceramic tile mixture is very simple: the quartz (кварц) sand which gives hardness to a material, clay which does a material plastic enough, and other materials. The types of ceramic tile are so different that it is very difficult to find an identical tile.

A decorative brick

Certainly, the decorative brick has a considerable quantity of various colour shades. So you may have opportunities to choose certain colour for your own house. It is possible to draw beautiful drawings on such brick if you desire. Besides, this brick has very good reliability. Decorative brick will remain the same for many years. It is covered with a special mix and the moisture doesn’t destroy it.

Marble

Marble is used both for interior, and for exterior finishing work. Marble is durable, resistant to temperature changes and moisture content. Marble, practically, is eternal (вечный), though requires protection against harmful environment. For this purpose the use of special means is desirable: the stone impregnations (пропитка), clearing mixtures, mastics, even ordinary beeswax. Window sills, steps, pavement tile are made of marble. Marble columns and the walls faced with a noble stone underline the importance of a construction and its high status.

Clapboard (вагонка)

The most widespread facing material now, especially at a finishing work in wooden houses, is such unique material, as clapboard. Actually, clapboard occupies a special place among facing materials.

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Wooden clapboard is a decorative board which is intended for a sheet work of walls and doors. Wooden clapboard is a nonpolluting material made of timber. Keeping all useful properties of timber, clapboard is not only decorative element, but it also gives a beautiful appearance.

A facing brick

Now brick is used not only to erect strong houses, but also to finish buildings outside. The brick used for facing can have any colour. The facing brick can resist very low temperature, even in the conditions of the extreme north. Besides, it perfectly absorbs moisture. The facing brick can be slightly roundish, and can be in the form of usual rectangles.

Paint and varnish materials (лако -красочные материалы) Paint and varnish materials are multi-compound mixtures (liquid, paste or powder mix). These materials are subdivided into varnishes (лаки), first coats, putties, paints (including enamels – эмаль).

EXERCISES

Ex.1. Match the terms with their definitions.

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Ex. 2. Put the following questions to your group-mates.

1.Is it important to pay special attention when designing a façade of a building? Why?

2.What facing materials do you know?

3.What can you say about their properties?

4.Which of them would you prefer for finishing your own house or office?

5.What does the term “siding” mean? What language does it come from?

6.What does the choice of facing materials depend on?

7.Does siding really help to improve the architectural image of a building?

8.What are the most popular building materials used for siding?

9.Can you list the main advantages of siding?

10.Does it have any disadvantages? What are they?

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Task. Look through the text and give a short summary.

TEXT 12. ROOF DESIGN

Roof is a building envelope, which provides protection from weather, notably snow, rain, as well heat, wind and sunlight. The performance of a roof is a key to the integrity of the structure, the comfort and well being of the occupants. Roof failures can occur from earthquakes, fire, snowstorms. Damage is also caused by saturation from ice damming (ледяной затор) and wind-blownmoistureintoatticspace(чердачноепомещение).

There are many roof styles that can be used for a house. In fact, it's quite common to combine several styles on one house. The roof makes up the basic personality of the house whether it is made of tile, metal, slate or wood. Based on the roof you can usually get a general idea how the house will look like.

The characteristics of a roof depend on the purpose of the building that the roof covers, the available roofing materials, the local traditions of construction, wider concepts of architectural design and practice, and may also be governed by local or national legislation. In most countries a roof protects primarily against rain. A verandah may be roofed with material that protects against sunlight but admits the other elements. The roof of a garden conservatory (оранжерея, зимний сад) protects plants from cold, wind and rain but admits light.

Design elements

The elements of a roof design are:

the material;

the construction;

the durability.

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